At 08:34 AM 5/13/2003, Mark Fischer wrote:
>Good morning Doug,
>
>There's a peculiar kind of clicking that happens when blackbirds flock
>on the way to roost at night. It's not song, maybe a way to keep the
>group centered?
These are generically called "location calls" and it is thought that they
serve to enhance the integrity of the flock. Lots of flocking birds use
this method to keep flocks intact and to give auditory clues for spacing
birds, etc. Think of geese in a "V" - never quiet, always talking to one
another.
>Well, it sounds like more than a few people have noticed the depth
>going on here. I wonder, do you have to be an old fart to perceive
>these things? It seems to me a shame this kind of listening is not
>taught to children.
I think you have to be old enough to have dropped the human hubris that
says that we are the only ones who can "really" communicate! It takes years=
of noticing the undeniable truth that we aren't the sole sentient beings on=
the planet.
Doug
Doug Von Gausig
Clarkdale, Arizona, USA
Moderator
Nature Recordists e-mail group
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/naturerecordists
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